Promoting diversity from the inside

In 2017 the #metoo campaign propelled gender equality and diversity conversations to the forefront of organizational debates worldwide. Since then the various benefits of creating a diverse and inclusive workspace have been widely discussed.

Schibsted, with its international Marketplace portfolio, has always had a naturally diverse culture. But as a company, we want to do even more. That is why diversity and inclusion became a topic of high priority in 2018. From the beginning it was clear that creating a cultural shift wouldn’t be easy, and that in order to achieve it we would need to invite advocates and influencers across the globe.

In October 2018 Change-Makers was born. 16 individuals across eleven countries came together to share, shape and build a movement of change. Change-Makers is not a traditional diversity and inclusion program. It’s a community that believes in creating change from the inside in order to transform our workplaces into spaces where differences are embraced, and everyone feels empowered to realize their full potential. The vision for driving change is twofold. On the one hand, we aim to encourage our community to empower each other. We do this through different tactics such as soft skills development, workshops on diversity, career planning, etc. At its core, Change-Makers is about identifying and solving root cause problems.

On the other hand it’s about organizational change. We believe that this new community will be a key pillar in creating workplaces that are bold enough to tackle real problems such as maternity and paternity leave policies, attracting (and retaining) more women in tech and embracing the benefits of having diverse teams. No one ever said change was simple, but having an organization that supports its individuals and communities is the first step towards creating a future we can all be proud of.